In my years working for a dealer website provider, I was often tasked with keeping up with the latest trends in website design, particularly how they pertained to their value from a traffic and lead-generation perspective. Google was always my beat. It wasn’t an easy task since they put out about as much content in the form of blog posts, videos, and patents as any other non-news publication out there, but I enjoyed it because they rarely delivered messages that were crystal clear. It gave me the challenge of being an interpreter and the turmoil of the possible consequences if I was wrong. Call me a geek, but in many ways working the “Google beat” was exhilarating.

The search giant has been more forthcoming in recent years. One of their first very straight-forward recommendations was for responsive website design. They published many things about it back in 2012, including an article on their Webmaster Central blog titled “Responsive design – harnessing the power of media queries“. They reiterated it a couple of months later in their recommendations for smartphone-optimized websites.

At the time, my direction was clear. I recommended that my former company build responsive websites. It was the future, the near future in my opinion, and we needed to be early to the game. There were already a handful of companies going into the responsive realm in the automotive industry and I didn’t want us to be left behind.

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How much do you spend on boosting organic content (page posts) each month on Facebook? If you're utilizing lead ads on Facebook, what content are you putting into those lead ads and how are you targeting the audience? (custom audiences, lookalikes, saved audiences) Any advice is appreciated!

Would that be more like not wearing deodorant to see if you actually stink (I smell like a rose) or like a major league catcher risking it all and not wearing a cup just to feel the rush? Either way, I've gone dark on Classified before but got scared and re-upped too soon to measure... […]

Curious question for GM dealers - is your dealership participating in SFE for 2019? Ask your GM/Dealer and comment please. The new program is based on objectives, which are not given until the 1st working day of the month. And the payout grids are "examples" that are not concrete as of today's... GM SFE for […]

What companies in our industry either offer or are working towards a full Digital Retail / Online Vehicle Purchase solution or service for dealerships (and their website) that can handle the full transaction from beginning to end? This thread will list and link to all the companies in our... Who offers a full Digital Retailing […]

Meanwhile, Cars.com under pressure to perform. Cars.com pressured to perform, shake up management or sell http://www.autonews.com/article/20181211/RETAIL/181219900/cars-com-starboard "If shareholders do not see progress soon, then we believe it would be... Cars.com is being told to profit or sell

Editors

Jeff Kershner

I’m the founder of DealerRefresh. I got my start in the dealer business when I was 18. From there I've worked throughout several departments within fixed to variable ops. Whether it’s managing the desk, perfecting sales process or studying online marketing and media trends, I absolutely love this business and the challenges it brings. On top of keeping up with DealerRefresh, I consult with dealerships and key industry businesses. My passion has been and continues to be helping dealers leverage new media to sell and improve customer service.

Alex Snyder

Alex was born into the car business. His family owns a group of stores in Virginia where he held a multitude of positions since he first cut the grass there in 1989. DealerRefresh caught his attention in 2006 and he has been a part of the community ever since. In 2010 Alex joined Dealer.com to help put a dealer's spin on products; where he got a front row seat to converse with over 13,000 dealers and watch 2 acquisitions totaling over $5 Billion. Today, Alex lives in Vermont and works to make DealerRefresh amazing!